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by BuddysImpala



Category: The Greatest Showman (2017)
Genre: Christmas, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Poor Phil, Snow, TGSSecretSanta2k18, Winter, barlyle - Freeform, cuteness, it was a little longer than anticipated oops, slight angst but!!! gASP I wasn’t terrible
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-22
Updated: 2018-12-22
Packaged: 2019-09-24 19:06:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,821
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17106413
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BuddysImpala/pseuds/BuddysImpala
Summary: Phillip comes home from a disastrous party to a gift from Phineas.





	Home

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Inphinity](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Inphinity/gifts).



> Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays, Eve! I hope you enjoy! 😁
> 
> Request: Barlyle Angst or Fluff. If angst, crying is highly approved, or humiliation based stuff or fear. If fluff, cuddles or dancing or blessed things. Of you can achieve angst and fluff in one then I owe you my hand in marriage. Am more interested in the comfort than the hurt.
> 
> (It’s a little longer than I expected, I can’t really rush background info that well, but please stick with me — I think you’ll like it 😁)
> 
> Beta’ed by SilverLynxx, thanks for the help!

He should have known going to the Christmas party was a bad idea. The fact that Phineas couldn’t come with him made things even worse, but they couldn’t risk Phillip’s parents asking questions. Phineas was only supposed to be his business partner after all, one that his parents hardly approved of. So, Phineas had sent him off with a kiss and a “good luck, I love you.”

He was going to need it.

The sky was dark; the ground covered with fresh, undisturbed snow that almost glowed in the moonlight. Phillip longed to stay home with Phineas, to dance in the snow and sip hot chocolate and kiss rosy red lips. But he knew his parents would kill him if he was late tonight.

At first, everything was fine; he wasn’t late, and his parents greeted him at the door, seeming a little distracted about something but overall surprisingly pleasant. As his father offered to take his coat, Phillip couldn’t help but notice the way his mother stayed close and clung to his arm. Her eyes fluttered back and forth between her son’s face and the door, and Phillip frowned.

“Is something wro—?”

She let go of his arm before he could finish the question and hurried off to speak with some of their other guests. Phillip wasn’t the first one to arrive, but he was far from the last — after taking his coat, Mr. Carlyle once again became preoccupied with answering the door. Phillip went off on his own, mostly keeping to himself — he could feel the stares from his parents’ friends, could almost hear the whispers about “the scandalous Carlyle boy.”

Maybe half an hour had passed when Mr. and Mrs. Carlyle called their son back to the door.

He went willingly enough and found his parents standing with a young woman, about twenty-one or twenty-two. She stood at his height and wore a magnificent ball gown, blue eyes glittering, long black hair framing her pale face, and perfectly pink lips.

“Phillip,” Mrs. Carlyle spoke, “this is Adeline Christianson.”

Christianson. Phillip recognized the name as belonging to one of his father’s friends, but hadn’t realized they had a daughter.

He cleared his throat and extended a hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Christianson.”

To his surprise, Adeline chuckled. Mr. Carlyle cleared his throat, and Phillip gave him his attention.

“Phillip,” he began, an eyebrow raised, “Ms. Christianson is here because your mother and I have decided she is to be your wife.”

Phillip blinked once. Twice. Could already feel his cheeks growing warm.

“I beg your pardon?”

Phillip stared at his mother and father, mouth agape. He barely even noticed Adeline, the woman he was allegedly supposed to marry, staring at him with a frown on her pretty face. Around them, his parents’ guests started to close in, intrigued by what was going on between the Carlyles and their estranged son. Faces blurred around the edges of his vision.

Mr. Carlyle edged closer and Phillip flinched as he leaned in, his breath hot and words cruel against his ear. “Time’s up, Phillip. Since you’ve failed to obtain a wife for so long, we’ve found one for you.”

Mr. Carlyle grasped Phillip’s shoulder. Phillip jerked away, shuddering, hoping nobody around them would notice.

_(“I’m sorry!” Phillip, age fifteen, shrieked, harsh tears rolling down his cheeks as he tried to squirm away from his father’s cruel hand. “I’m sorry!”_

_“You will never humiliate me like that again, do you understand?!” Mr. Carlyle spat. His son had deliberately missed the date the senior Carlyle had arranged for him with Vivianne Davis, daughter of one of the most wealthy men in town. The cane came down with a crack and Phillip screamed._

_“Never! Never, never!”)_

“I would like to announce the engagement of my son, Phillip Carlyle, and Miss Adeline Christianson!”

Everyone was staring at him. Phillip shook his head, faces blurring, tears welling in his eyes. Adeline squeezed his hand. A ring already on her finger.

“No!” Tears rolled down his cheeks. “No, I’m sorry, Father, but I _refuse_.”

Before anyone could get a word in, Phillip bolted, forgetting his coat that his father had put away, forgetting he had an image to uphold, forgetting everything.

He ran out into the cold. It was snowing again as he ran blindly, ran home, ran to Phineas. Nobody followed him. His teeth chattered, rattled inside his head, roaring alongside his own maddening thoughts. Tears fell and froze onto burning red, ice cold cheeks.

He fell with a cry; didn’t see the patch of ice and fell backwards, landing on his ankle — perhaps sprained or twisted, but it wasn’t broken, quite surprisingly.

For a moment he just lay there in the cold, in the snow. Alone. Tears of pain mixed with tears of humiliation and for the briefest of seconds he considered staying there, letting himself freeze. They wouldn’t be able to thaw him out until spring.

But, no.

Phineas.

Phineas was at home, waiting for him. Get to Phineas and he’d get to warmth, get to love, get to gentle hugs and kisses and brown puppy dog eyes — eyes that crinkled around the edges and made him melt, nothing like Adeline’s cold blue. Hot cocoa eyes. Laughing eyes. Loving eyes.

So, he got up. He screamed, nearly fell down again. But, gritting his teeth, he limped on. He limped home, limped to Phineas.

He was half frozen by the time he made it to Phineas’s door, teeth chattering so loudly he could no longer hear his own thoughts. Snow melted in his hair, dripped down his face.

But he made it home.

He raised a fist and knocked.

The first thing he saw when Phineas opened the door were his twinkling eyes. But the twinkle faded and his smile melted away to concern.

“Phillip? What are you doing back so early?”

“C-Can I come in?”

Phineas nodded and stepped aside, letting Phillip through the door. Already the inside began to heat him up, and Phineas himself radiated warmth.

“Where’s your coat?” Phineas fretted, noticing Phillip lacked the extra layer of warmth he’d taken with him. He had a habit of worrying about others in the cold — no doubt a result of having to sleep on the streets during long winter nights. “You must be freezing!”

“I w-won’t deny that,” Phillip admitted.

Eyes softening, Phineas reached out to caress his face, following up with a soft kiss to his cheek. Phillip’s cheeks were slowly starting to warm up, but still quite red. “Go get changed, darling. I’ll get a fire going.”

Phillip gratefully hobbled toward their bedroom, gritting his teeth as he dragged his foot.

When he came back, dressed in a long-sleeved nightshirt and slippers, Phineas had a roaring, cracklings fire going, and the scent of soup wafted from the kitchen. For the first time since his arrival home, Phillip realized that he’d put up stockings and added a few more twinkling ornaments to the Christmas tree.

“You’ve been busy while I was gone,” Phillip teased gently. He shifted from one foot to the other, a flare of pain shooting up his leg. He winced and bit down on his lip to keep from crying out.

Phineas, of course, took notice.

“What’s wrong?”

“I — well,” his cheeks were red again, but this time not from the cold, “I might have slipped on my way home.”

“Pardon?”

Phillip rubbed the back of his neck.

“You’re hurt?”

“A bit of an over-exaggeration, I think, but—“

“You’re hurt.”

“A little,” Phillip sheepishly admitted.

Phineas stared at him a minute, fresh worry in his eyes. Before Phillip had a chance to say anything more, he was at the couch again, this time preparing a proper place for Phillip to sit and prop up his foot.

“Take a seat.”

“Phin—“

“Please.”

Once Phillip limped over to the couch and sat down, taking the weight off his ankle, he couldn’t stop the audible groan of relief that escaped his parted lips. Phineas disappeared for a moment to fetch him a bowl of soup, and sat beside him on the couch as he began to eat, the hot meal warming up his insides.

After letting him eat for a few minutes in peace, Phineas gently ran a hand through Phillip’s still-wet hair. “What happened?” he murmured.

Phillip stopped eating. He simply froze. Phineas removed the bowl from his lap and set it on the coffee table.

“The decorations are gorgeous, Phin.”

“Phillip.”

Phillip fell silent again and ducked his head. Phineas cupped Phillip’s face in his hands and tilted his chin up, their eyes locking.

“What happened at that party, Phil? I know you came home early for a reason — you must have been there only an hour.”

At the memory, fresh tears welled in Phillip’s eyes. His lips parted to explain, but, not usually one at a loss for what to say, he found himself unable to speak. He hid his face into Phineas’s shoulder in mortification. His body trembled.

Mildly horrified, Phineas held the younger man as he cried and attempted to shush him. He’d seen Phillip cry before, the man had a lot of horrors from his childhood he’d never been able to properly work out, but this was a first — he’d never known Phillip to be at a total loss for words.

“Shh. It’s all right.” Phineas tilted his face up enough to press a soft kiss to Phillip’s forehead before burying his face in Phillip’s hair. “Take deep breaths, darling. I’m right here. What happened?”

Phillip sucked in a shaky breath as he finally pulled away from Phineas’s shoulder, but still made an effort to avoid the man’s eyes. “My parents had a... surprise for me at the party,” he admitted, voice shaking at first, but evening out towards the end.

“Oh? What kind of surprise?”

“They had... found a young lady they wanted me to... wed.”

Phineas was silent for several moments. Finally, Phillip dared to peek up at him.

Phineas caught him looking and gently traced a thumb over Phillip’s lower lip. “And... is that something you’d be interested in, Phil?”

Phillip stiffened and rose his head. “Excuse me?”

Phineas’s brow furrowed in confusion, but, realizing his mistake, he backtracked. Reaching for Phillip’s hand, he sighed. “I just meant — it would be safer for you, Phil. Though I doubt your parents had very good intentions in selecting a wife for you, they are right in that it’s what society expects of you. I just...” He sighed again and squeezed Phillip’s hand. “I just want to make sure that you won’t come to regret our relationship.” Something flashed in his eyes and he hesitated a moment before speaking again. “I want what’s best for you. Though I hope we can continue what we have for many years to come, I would understand if a relationship that offered more... security gave you better peace of mind. Even if that meant being with a woman.”

Phineas’s offer took a moment to register with Phillip. “No! I—“ He closed his eyes, not used to being flustered, and forced himself to take another deep breath. Opening his eyes, he looked at Phineas. “I couldn’t do it, Phin. I ran out and... I even forgot my coat. I only want _you_. I only love _you_.”

A small smile curled at Phineas’s lips. He leaned in for a kiss, brushing his lips softly against Phillip’s, and gently cradled his face once they’d pulled away. “And I only love you, dear Phillip. I must admit, I’m relieved you have no intentions of marrying anyone else — I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

Phillip blushed. Phineas grinned.

“Do you think you can stand, darling?” Phineas asked. He nodded towards Phillip’s ankle. “I have something I’d like to show you, but we’ve got to go outside first.”

“Perhaps, if you assist me. But I — I haven’t got a coat, Phineas.”

“Not to worry.” Phineas grinned again, eyes sparkling. “You can borrow one of mine.”

“Not the red coat, I hope.”

Phineas chuckled and kissed Phillip’s brow. “I can be practical sometimes, you know.”

Turns out, Phineas did have a spare coat. As Phillip put it on, Phineas fetched warm trousers he could wear along with his nightshirt. But Phineas’s coat was a bit too big for Phillip’s smaller frame.

“I feel like Charles,” Phillip muttered.

Phineas laughed.

Phillip leaned against Phineas’s shoulder and Phineas kept him in a tight, steady embrace as they made their way outside, Phillip using his bad foot as little as possible. Phineas lightly kissed the side of his head as he helped the younger man leave the warm comfort of their home. It had started to snow again shortly after Phillip’s return.

“Oh,” Phillip gasped as they made their way outdoors, “Oh Phineas, it’s beautiful.”

Phineas had used the remaining ornaments from their indoor tree to decorate a tall tree in their backyard. The moonlight glimmered off of the icicles and homemade snowflakes that hung off the branches.

“The girls helped me with some of those,” Phineas informed Phillip, nodding toward the snowflakes as he led the younger man towards the tree.

As they got closer, Phillip noticed that P.T. had carved ‘P.T.B. & P.C.’ into the bark of the trunk. He leaned into Phineas’s shoulder as he stifled a giggle.

“Don’t tease,” Phineas chuckled, grinning. “Caroline came up with the idea. I wanted them to be a part of my surprise for you.”

“The girls were here?”

“Well, no, not tonight, but they may have helped me with the idea when they were here a few days ago.”

“Phin, you didn’t have to—“

“Shh,” Phineas put a finger to Phillip’s lips. “Look up.”

A mistletoe hung from the branch they stood under.

Despite himself, a love-struck smile spread across Phillip’s face. “I adore you.”

“And I, you,” Phineas smiled, drawing Phillip close into a warm, loving kiss. After they pulled away, he placed another kiss to the tip of Phillip’s nose. “To think you didn’t want to join my circus when we first met.”

“Mmm, I would have said yes sooner had I known I’d end up falling for a certain ringmaster.”

Phineas reached down to take hold of Phillip’s hand, rubbing his thumb softly over the playwright’s palm. His other hand trailed down into his coat pocket. “...Would you also say yes to this?”

Phillip’s breath caught in his throat as Phineas pulled out a small black box. When he opened the box, the ring glittered in the moonlight.

“Phillip, I know that we can never officiate our union ‘properly,’ but I have never been a man of ordinary affairs. After Charity and I separated, I never thought I’d find someone I could love as much as I did her — but who was I to know that my overcompensated apprentice would be the one to sweep me off my feet?”

Grinning, Phillip swatted his arm.

“Your mother and father may have scared you away from uniting with a woman they’d deemed ‘acceptable,’ but I can’t help but hope you’ll make an exception for me. Would you do me the greatest honor, Phillip Carlyle, and become mine?”

As Phineas waited expectantly, an achingly beautiful smile on his face, Phillip reached up and brushed their lips together.

“I’m sure I can make an exception — just this once.”

Phineas’s smile widened into a blinding grin and he slipped the ring onto Phillip’s finger before pulling him into a crushing hug.

“Just once is all I need,” Phineas promised, kissing him again.

Phillip shook his head. “You’re crazy, Mr. Barnum.”

“If it’s crazy, live a little—“

“If you finish with a song lyric you seduced me with in that bar, I _will_ hit you over the head.”

Phineas smirked.

Too late; Phillip realized his mistake.

“ _Seduced_ , eh?”

“That’s not what I said.”

“Oh, but I think it is.”

Throwing his hands up in the air in exasperation, Phillip laughed as he walked away, headed back into the house.

However, his laughter quickly evolved into a shriek as Phineas grabbed him from behind, wrapping his arms around Phillip before pulling him down into the snow. Winding up on top, Phineas grinned as he pinned down Phillip’s arms.

“Gotcha.”

“You’re insufferable.”

“Oooh, that’s a big word.”

“That was literally my jo — you know what? Forget it.”

Phineas laughed and pressed Phillip further into the snow as he kissed him again.

“I love you,” he said, affectionately running his hand through Phillip’s snow-soaked hair.

“Lettie doesn’t pay me enough nannying money to put up with you.”

Phineas’s jaw dropped. Phillip laughed and pushed him off, taking the ringmaster off guard as he got up and ran — err, limped — back into the house.

“You’ll pay for that, Carlyle!”

“You’ll have to catch me first!”

(And of course, Phineas would — he just thought he’d let Phillip get a head start).


End file.
